World War II Letters: a Good Marriage


Dad married Bonnie (my mom) on December 26, 1944.  After that he was stationed at the army base in Pratt, Kansas, where they had a little apartment but dreamed of owning a little cottage somewhere with a white picket fence covered by roses. Married for less than two months, they were still starry-eyed about being wed and seemed almost to worship each other.  Mom had been staying with Dad’s parents, who thought she would be less lonely with them in their house in Northwest Indiana.  Dad’s older brother Jesse was one of the witnesses and Dad’s twin brother Eddie’s wife Marge was another at the small, informal ceremony presided over by a justice of the peace.  It’s hard to picture my parents as two kids in love, but I love reading about it.

        Feb 19, 1945
                                                                                        Monday
 Lincoln, Nebraska
 Time 1500 hours
 1600 hours your time
 (Your time is my time)

Dear Mom & Dad,

     I’m sorry I’ve written so often to you.  I guess you’re getting tired of reading so much of my mail, so I’ll quit writing so much.  Bonnie says, and I quote, “Hmmmm?”  5 letters!!!!  That’s what you owe Bonnie, she says.

     Well, how is everyone there at home?  I sure hope you are all right.  Bonnie and I couldn’t be any happier.  You can sure be proud of your new daughter.  I thought that before Bonnie and I were married that I knew her, but I can say now I didn’t.  She is so much sweeter than I ever dreamed.  She has done so many things to make me happy, and now we are in our own little heaven here on earth.  I don’t know how I was ever lucky enough to have Bonnie as my wife, because she is truly an angel.  Our home will always be one you can be proud of, just as your home has always been.  Mom, Bonnie is like you are.  You always said you had a temper, and she says she has one too.  I’ve never seen your tempers flying around loose.  If you see one, catch it for me.  I would like to see one.

     Bonnie told me how happy she was with you and how sweet you were to her.  She told me how you gave her the money she needed and had seen her safely on her way to me.  I’ll never forget that.  I knew I could count on you both.  If ever the time comes when I have to leave Bonnie again, and she ever needs anyone, I won’t worry because I know you’ll be there.

     Well, you know we both miss you, but maybe before very long we’ll be home on furlough again (We hope).  Bonnie says, “hello.”  I’ll close for now.  Be careful both of you.  God bless you and watch over you.

                                                                   Your loving son,
                                                                       Elwood

p.s.  Bonnie’s feet are cold.  What should you do for that?  Until I hear from you, I’ll make her wear shoes.

About John

About John John Bolinger was born and raised in Northwest Indiana, where he attended Ball State University and Purdue University, receiving his BS and MA from those schools. Then he taught English and French for thirty-five years at Morton High School in Hammond, Indiana before moving to Colorado, where he resided for ten years before moving to Florida. Besides COME SEPTEMBER, Journey of a High School Teacher, John's other books are ALL MY LAZY RIVERS, an Indiana Childhood, and COME ON, FLUFFY, THIS AIN'T NO BALLET, a Novel on Coming of Age, all available on Amazon.com as paperbacks and Kindle books. Alternately funny and touching, COME SEPTEMBER, conveys the story of every high school teacher’s struggle to enlighten both himself and his pupils, encountering along the way, battles with colleagues, administrators, and parents through a parade of characters that include a freshman boy for whom the faculty code name is “Spawn of Satan,” to a senior girl whose water breaks during a pop-quiz over THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS. Through social change and the relentless march of technology, the human element remains constant in the book’s personal, entertaining, and sympathetic portraits of faculty, students, parents, and others. The audience for this book will certainly include school teachers everywhere, teenagers, parents of teens, as well as anyone who appreciates that blend of humor and pathos with which the world of public education is drenched. The drive of the story is the narrator's struggle to become the best teacher he can be. The book is filled with advice for young teachers based upon experience of the writer, advice that will never be found in college methods classes. Another of John's recent books is Mum's the Word: Secrets of a Family. It is the story of his alcoholic father and the family's efforts to deal with or hide the fact. Though a serious treatment of the horrors of alcoholism, the book also entertains in its descriptions of the father during his best times and the humor of the family's attempts to create a façade for the outside world. All John's books are available as paperbacks and Kindle readers on Amazon, and also as paperbacks at Barnes & Noble. John's sixth book is, Growing Old in America: Notes from a Codger was released on June 15, 2014. John’s most recent book is a novel titled Resisting Gravity, A Ghost Story, published the summer of 2018 View all posts by John →
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